new v6 holden using lots of oil

[monte.b]

I read in yesterdays courier mail a couple of people wrote into the Graham Smith column asking advice about the oil consumption in there new commodores ,like 5-7 ltrs between oil changes at 15000 intervals ,seems a lot of oil to me as ive never had to put extra oil in my bf ute since i bought it new anybody else heard about this problem.The reason im asking is my brother drives an old wb statesman ,had it for many years and is thinking of upgrading

[burnz]

comes down to how you run them in, all engine will do the same if not bedded properly.

[Cuyper]

Most engines use lots of oil when new, It depends if they are spun up to 8,000 rpm, during leak testing in the factory or not. I'd rather do it at home slowly myself.

[Watto_Cobra]

5 to 7 litres? That's like an oil change between oil changes. No, haven't heard any personal accounts of that yet.

My AU has never used a drop. FG neither except when I had the "timing chain cover bolts too long" leak.


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[Rodge]

My Gen3 5.7 litre V8 used a fair bit of oil, not that much but that was a long time ago.
I have heard the little 3.6 uses a bit of oil but like you I'd be interested in how much. Perhaps one of the regular users of the Holden forums could shed some light or provide a link so we can all see what the Holden users are actually saying ? That way anyone on here that might be potentially holding a candle for a new VF might get their eye's opened.

[Peter B - CV8]

Holden's I have owned ;
-1997 VS Statesman with the 3.8 Ecotech motor. Was 6 months old, with 15,000 k's when I purchased it - never used any oil.
- 2004 Monaro with the LS1/5.7 motor. Purchased brand new - has never used any oil.
- (Son's) 2006 VE SV6 with the 3.8 litre Alloytec (I think). Was 2 years old, with 60,000 k's when he purchased it - doesn't use any oil.
Also previously had a Gemini (back in the late 70's) & a VL wagon (6 cylinder) in the 80's - neither used any oil.
Owned a fair few Fords as well - no oil usage problems.

To the OP, if your brother is looking at upgrading to an LS1 motor, try to get one with a build date from mid 2004 onwards (had revised piston/rings). But at the end of the day, if it hasn't been run in properly (ie bores glazed) - then it's going to consume oil.

[kempy311]

If I had owned a car using that much oil and it was still underwarraty I would want it fixed.

[flappist]

So we have all forgotten about the oil eating BA GTs.........

[Elements]

My housemate's SV6 ute (SIDI, ~80,000km) has to be topped up with oil 2-3 times between services. Oil level has even dropped below the dipstick once or twice... but you can't tell him there's anything wrong, because "it's an engine, they all use oil"...

Apparently there's something wrong with my FG (2011, 30,000km) because the oil level change between services is negligable... hahaha

[scottyg938]

My dad has a ve sv6 ute and hasn't had this problem at all

[Silver Ghia]

7 litres in 15,000kms, you'd be putting a litre in every 2,000kms. Certainly not a healthy motor at all, I'd be jumping up and down at the dealers.

Thats one thing with my FG, the oil level stays near the full mark right until the next service. But then I helped bed in the rings by not using the cruise control during the first 1000kms, also doing a few (not too hard) accelerations uphill during the first 50kms.

[turbo4me]

Buying a new fg xr6 soon, what is the recommendations for running it in?

[burnz]

Originally Posted by Silver Ghia

7 litres in 15,000kms, you'd be putting a litre in every 2,000kms. Certainly not a healthy motor at all, I'd be jumping up and down at the dealers.

Thats one thing with my FG, the oil level stays near the full mark right until the next service. But then I helped bed in the rings by not using the cruise control during the first 1000kms, also doing a few (not too hard) accelerations uphill during the first 50kms.

this ^^^

Originally Posted by turbo4me

Buying a new fg xr6 soon, what is the recommendations for running it in?

[monte.b]

It was the alloytec v6 engine they were talking about ,not the v8 sorry if i confused you all

[olds]

1 litre per 5000 kms is normal

[Rodge]

Originally Posted by olds

1 litre per 5000 kms is normal

Link to www.ls1.com.au topic on this anyone ????

[Rodge]

Originally Posted by flappist

So we have all forgotten about the oil eating BA GTs.........

...and they're not the only Ford V8's that like a little drink of the golden stuff from time to time.

[M&Ms]

Have lady at work who serviced her car at 15,000. At 28,000, engine started making noises. She took it in to holden and it was almost completely empty of oil. She's hardly a leadfoot. This is in a series 2 sv6

[TC200six]

This does sound like a running in issue. Not all 3.6L V6s I've seen have bad oil consumption issues.

Although, I have seen a noisy one (VE) with a stretched timing chain. It was causing a fault code to appear and it did 35,000kms over a service interval.

[Giant Cranium]

i have a 2010 ve ute that i have put 90000ks on and it has not used 1 drop of oil. has been the most reliable car i have had.

[olds]

A properly designed engine needs to have some oil by pass the rings to lubricate the top part of he cylinder or excessive upper cylinder wear will occur . The trick is to get he amount correct . The run in can have a lot to do with the outcome . a practice which has been lost with the mechanically uneducated .

[music189]

Lucky non of you blokes own a late VW or BMW they chew through oil between services and its classed as normal.
Plenty of talk about it with the current VW problems

I can remember reading something about late Commodores using oil but can't remember where
My Terri has used .5 of a litre of oil once between services and its up at 85000 now

[Bossxr8]

There is at least one letter per week in Carsguide of someone complaining of heavy oil use in an Alloytec V6. Seems like a fairly common issue.

[Road_Warrior]

Originally Posted by olds

A properly designed engine needs to have some oil by pass the rings to lubricate the top part of he cylinder or excessive upper cylinder wear will occur . The trick is to get he amount correct . The run in can have a lot to do with the outcome . a practice which has been lost with the mechanically uneducated .

Problem is the salesmen when you buy a new car, when we bought our Territory I asked about the running in period and I was told you don't have to do it these days with modern engines because they are "hot tested at the factory" errm yeah ok

[monte.b]

So does that mean the engine on my ute will stuff up shortly ,it has never had any oil added between changes ,its now done 106000 kms ,and no water either

[jpd80]

I had a good long talk to a metalurgist about this and came away with
the same question he asked me, "What exactly are you running in?"

All the piston and ring clearances are set at the factory, they're as good
as they will ever be and the hone on the bores is only to assist seating
of compression and oil control rings which these says are all low tension
jobbies. So apart from setting the carbon seal on the top ring,
there's nothing to really "run in"...


Years ago when I built a few Clevelands, yes you had to make sure that
things were properly run if you were running close or tight clearances.

[Cuyper]

If youve ever seen how fast engines are slapped together in an mass production engine plant youll understand why they need running in and why they use less oil with age.

[zilo]

I'll say it....15000k's between oil changes is mechanical abuse.

Great while it's under warranty...but long term one of the cheapest services on a car and the most important.

If a person believes 15000k is reasonable then they have rocks in their head....


(flame suit on)

[zilo]

Originally Posted by jpd80

I had a good long talk to a metalurgist about this and came away with
the same question he asked me, "What exactly are you running in?"

.

One thing that comes to mind is the setting of the temper in the bore, the rings etc.

Same as when you have new brakes, give them a certain number of warm up and cool down cycles to harden properly....don't just thrash them right away and they last longer and not glaze etc.

[BennyH]

Originally Posted by zilo

I'll say it....15000k's between oil changes is mechanical abuse.

Great while it's under warranty...but long term one of the cheapest services on a car and the most important.

If a person believes 15000k is reasonable then they have rocks in their head....


(flame suit on)

I'm not disputing the fact that regular oil change is ideal, but why does the manufacturers recommend 15,000 kms intervals if what you suggest is true? Surely a bit of time and effort would be put in to reach the magic number of 15,000 km.